Romans 1
I Long to See You
If you have ever been separated from a loved one
You know the longing to see that person
The longing to be united with them
As this longing is for family and friends, so it should be with believers
Paul said to the Romans, “I long to see you….”
God gives us a longing to be with other believers so we might
Impart some Spiritual Gift
We might have Mutual Encouragement
And we might have a Harvest Among Them
I Long to See You
If you have ever been separated from a loved one,
you know the longing to see that person.
As a young father,
I was in Africa to share the Gospel
and encourage the churches.
This trip did not turn out the way it was planned.
I went with one group and was to meet another group of ministers.
After the first group left,
I was alone and the second group never made it and
they had all the connection for the places we were to go.
I was alone like never before in my life.
I was in a dangerous place and
had overwhelming feeling I may never see
my wife and at the time two young daughters.
I remember trying to hold myself together,
but the longing brought great pain.
I thought maybe I can let some of this pain out by
crying only to find it gave me a terrible headache.
Paul in Romans 1:11 says, “I long to see you”
There are three things Paul speaks of accomplishing
from his longing to be with the Roman believers.
Verse 11…
I long to see you so that I may impart to you
some spiritual gift to make you strong.
Paul longed to see the believers,
so he might “impart”.
Many times, when we travel,
we buy something to give our loved ones when we return.
Paul wanted to give something of value
when he saw the believers.
He says it was an impartation of spiritual gifts.
Paul understood the Gospel he preached
was full of spiritual gifts.
The Gift of Salvation, Jesus, as he
preached the Good News of the Kingdom
with the Gift of Teaching and
healed the sick with the Gift of Healing.
Paul knew how freely God has given us gifts
through the Gospel of Jesus Christ and
he wanted to give them to the people in Rome.
Paul knew the Gifts of the Spirit of God
were to establish people in the faith
in order that they may be strong.
You and I, who understand the Gospel,
have may spiritual gifts to give others.
Like being in a gift shop on vacation,
we look for gifts with a particular person in mind.
You and I need to look into the Gospel
to see what Gifts of the Spirit
we might impart to those we long to see.
The second thing Paul wanted
to accomplish is found in verse 12…
that is, that you and I may be mutually
encouraged by each other's faith.
Mutual encouragement
Encouragement: expressions of support or approval,
words or actions that assist or inspire someone
Mutual encouragement is found in “Each other’s Faith”.
No matter where I have been,
when I meet a believer and
they share with me what God is doing
or done in their life, I get encouraged.
I find myself not watching the clock
as we share the things of God together.
There is something so special about being with
other believers and sharing our precious faith.
We need to make sure this type of mutual
encouragement is taking place in our lives often.
The third benefit of Paul’s longing to
be with the people of Rome was…
Fruitfulness
Paul wanted a harvest among the people.
Paul wanted to join with the believers to see
their relatives and friends saved by the power of God.
Paul not only cared for the believers,
he cared for their loved ones.
In the church, I pastored there were a
group of women who met in homes regularly.
These women studied God’s Word together,
worshiped together and prayed together.
The power and miracles that came from that
group of ladies over the decades was amazing.
They were one of the greatest forces that made the church grow,
and I don’t think any of them knew it.
One of the most common things they did was pray
for their loved ones to come to Christ and get saved.
I remember when God laid a heavy burden
for five of the women of this group on my heart
for their husbands to come to Christ.
I began to pray and fast and look for ways
I could spend time with those husbands.
Over time, everyone of them came to Christ.
I got the privilege to join with their
prayers and work to have a harvest.
So many family members from that Women’s
Bible Study came to the Lord that the
growth of the church was greatly increased
from those family members who were once lost…
And the condition of their souls laid heavily
on a believing wife and mother.
God gives us a longing to be with other believers so we might…
Impart some Spiritual Gift
We might have Mutual Encouragement
And we might have a Harvest Among Them
Scripture Reading
Romans 1:11-13 NIV
11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
